Tuxie Tuesday with Madison

Hi, I had to go back to the v-e-t on Friday. I had to be checked up to make sure the antibiotics did the trick and got rid of my URI. I still snuffle and have sinus issues, but I've had that my whole life. Other than than, I'm clear. My teeth are not good, so in preparation for some dental work, they took blood out of me for a "senior" health screen. Hmmmph! I won't even be 13 years old until May. My blood screen revealed that I'm perfectly healthy...I could have told them that. They wouldn't take my word for it.Some of my kitty friends had questions about my eyes. If you look closely in the first picture you can see that my eyes are green but they have brown speckles in them. My eyes used to be pure green but as I get "older", they have changed. You can see the picture below taken 2 years ago and you can see the difference.

My doctor says it's a condition called melanosis. It can be harmless, but it could also turn to melanoma so my mom and dad have to watch it closely and I need to have the doctor check me out regularly too. I guess that means I can't skip out on my regular check ups. The doctor was up on this because his kitty had the same condition a couple of years ago and his kitty lost one of his eyes! I hope that doesn't happen to me.

That's it for the tuxie man cat report.

Come back tomorrow to help celebrate Cory's birthday!

Man Cat Monday- Breakthrough

It's been almost 7 weeks since I was trapped in my backyard and brought inside the house. Since then, I've had a hard time adjusting to life on the inside. I've spent most of my time hiding behind the couch. Not that it's been so bad because there is a heater vent back there. I also don't have to worry about finding food anymore. I started exploring the house at night, but I got stressed out and started pulling fur out of my tail. My mom and dad found clumps of my tail fur around the house and that upset them. I lost my exploring privileges and now I'm back in my safe room until I feel more secure.

I suppose that now that you have seen this photo, my secret is out! On Saturday morning I decided that I'd let my new mom pet me a little bit. That seemed to make her happy. On Sunday morning when she came in to sit with me, I let her pet me. A lot. Then she invited me to sit on her lap on a soft blankie. It sounded like a good idea so I hopped in her lap and stayed there for 2 whole hours while I remembered what it was like to be petted and loved. I even let out a little purr!

I'm not feral. It's just been a couple of years since I've known love and happiness. It's still going to take me awhile to realize that my life has forever changed and I don't need to be afraid anymore. Being afraid has become a habit I need to break. I'll get there. I spent the rest of the day back behind the couch.

Easy Like Sunday Morning

It feels more like winter than spring, so we think we will hang out and stay warm and dry today. Enjoy your Sunday! Pee Ess...Cory's birthday is coming up on April 1st! Come back and celebrate with her. She will be 3 years old.

Saturday In the Park

Before you hear about my adventures in the park, head over to Misha's for the Kitty Fight Club. Cory is up against Goma and she needs all the help she can get. Even the love of her momma may not get her out of this one...It's been months since I've been able to go to the dog park. I've been a whiny impossible pest.

I was supposed to have a play date with my boyfriend Trek, but he stood me up last weekend because he wimped out because of the rain. Hey, this is Oregon! I played in the park by myself that day. Today it's nicer out and there are several dogs. I've never met this boy before and he's kind of cute.

Yes, the greetings must happen...

I've missed the park, but I'm back now. Let the chasing games begin!

Saying Goodbye to Friends on Friday

Today we pay tribute to our friend Cal. We purred so hard for him our motors almost ran out. We never stopped hoping that he would get well. It was not to be.

Cal, you were loved by your family and by all of your good pals of the CB. You were one of the first CB friends we met. We were drawn to you because you looked so much like our Lewis who left for the Bridge a couple of weeks before I started my blog. Now it turns out, your passing mirrored his....losing weight, then losing the ability to breathe then losing the hard fought battle.

Lewis, I hope you were there to greet Cal and let him know the ropes of being a Guardian Angel cat.

Thursday in the Garden with Jonesie

Here it is, spring has arrived and we still don't have much sunshine. Welcome to spring in the Northwest! We still do not have any flowers blooming. Even our daffodils have not bloomed and it's almost the end of March. They are still a couple of days away from showing us any color. All I can do is hang out and help my dad with the final preparations of the veggie bed. Guess what he found while digging in the dirt? Yes, carrots from last years crop! They are perfectly good and ready to eat...if you like carrots. I don't like to eat them, I'm just happy there is a touch of color in the yard, even if it is a vegetable.

He kept on digging them up. They were there lurking in the garden all through the winter and under all that snow and ice. There were so many carrots, that mom can make carrot ginger soup again. She also has about 6 packages of carrots for the freezer.

What a nice surprise! PS...since I missed out on Wordy Wednesday yesterday, I want it to be known. My name is Jonesie and I'm a gardener.

Wordy Wednesday

A big thank you to Ann and her partners in creativity, Maggy and Zoey at Zoolatry for making this wordy event possible! It was hard to come up with only one word so we narrowed it down to 2 family members and thought really hard...

One more word for the day...FUN!

Tuxie Tuesday- Silky and Slender

I had a very exciting week. I was thrilled to be able to join Chilli's Silky & Slender Crew. I was a bit silly at first because I kept asking Chilli about wanting to join the Slinky club, but that was because I was confusing it with the "Slinky" party when Misha and the CB had the Presidential race. Silly me.

It's not such a big deal if I'm confused, right...silky, slender, slinky...silly, self-aware, self-satisfied, sassy, hmmm what other words come to mind to describe me? Confident, funny, cat with catitude, sweet, smart....

Pretty pawed princess, good sister, sound sleeper....

Big yawner...oh wait a second...I yawn big but I'm not a big yawner...

Better yet, tune in tomorrow to see what word I am!

Monday Ellie and Cory's Rules

Given the events of the past week with our mom crashing big time on her bike, we are implementing some new rules around here.

Rule #1- Mom, until you are completely healed up, the bike bags, booties and stuff stay under lock and paw. Don't even think of taking it out from under me.

Rule #2- Any activity will remain under the strict supervision of either Cory or Ellie.

Rule # 3- Mom, you aren't doing anything until you pass our cat-scan.

Rule #4- All workouts will be led by Cory. Any equipment used must be inspected and sniffed thoroughly.

Rule #5- The only bike mom can use is the bike to nowhere. Mom, we know you entered the Tour de Cure 100 mile bike race to raise money for diabetes in July...just follow our rules and you'll be ok.

Rule #6- The electric heating pad must be shared with Cory and Ellie. Everyone else can buzz off.

Any questions?

Sunday Stories

Everyone wants to know if I've actually met Nigel yet. He is now getting out of his room to explore the house and all us kitties have met him, including me. He still does not want to be petted or touched by mom and dad. We are all being very patient and giving him lots of room. He has taken longer to adjust than any cat my mom and dad have known. Here he is in the dining room. He's trying to look fierce, but it's just a yawn.

Hey, that's me! Here I am watching him closely and trying to figure him out. He still meows all the time. We listen to what he has to say. He was on his own for a long time so the entire story may take awhile to come out.

Proof that we are not the same cat! Here we are in the same picture. He's about to bolt for his safe room.

We got him some Rescue Remedy and a Feliway diffuser. We're hoping that helps him adjust. I admit I have hissed at him, but only a little.

Saturday- Special Doorway

Hi there! I'm going to show you how we keep the peace around here!

I bet you are wondering how we manage to have our dear wonderful silly unruly Grete dog in a house full of kitties? I'll tell you the answer to this mystery today. The story began with our guardian angel Colby dog. When she came home it was kind of the same as when Grete came home. A big old dog walking in to a houseful of cats is quite the scene. My mom and dad wish they had a video of my first meeting with Grete. She came in the house on a leash, let out one very serious "woof" and I jumped 10 feet straight up in the air before I scrambled for cover! The solution was to use a gate we have at the top of our stairs (which isn't always in place). Daddy cut a little doorway in the big door, so us cats have a way of escaping the dog if we get tired of her. If Grete is upstairs we can go downstairs or the other way around.We hadn't used the door for many years because our Colby dog settled down and we never really wanted to get away from her. We put it back up when Grete moved in. We were almost to the point of taking it down because we all are getting along with Grete, but we are leaving it in place for when Nigel starts to mix it up in the house with everyone. Here I am looking through the door.

Here I am, demonstrating how it works. There really is a little door with hinges in case we ever want to close the little door.

It's fun to play whapping paws through the little door too. It looks like a little door, but even Ginger fits through it.

After Grete goes to bed at night and she's tucked into her crate, Nigel is let out of his room to explore the house on his own. We have seen him use the little door too! Silly Nigel.

Formerly Feral Friday

It's been an interesting week. I've been looking after my buddy Madison, making sure he's doing well and recovering from his sniffle and rear end "issues". I like him a whole lot! My sisters are looking after my mom...a cats work is never done.

Meanwhile I'm worried about my buddy Nigel. Since he moved in the house I don't get to look after him like I used to. I have to rely on mom and dad for updates. Apparently, he's still meowing loudly for no apparent reason, but the meows are sounding a wee bit less desperate. Once Grete goes to bed in her crate at night, he's allowed out of his room to roam and explore on his own. Everyone else just looks at him while he's meowing...dude, what's your problem? Thing is, he doesn't really know. I know how it is to be formerly feral and it will just take him time to learn the ropes and learn to trust. He seems to like the other kitties but they think he's a bit odd. Ellie still hasn't washed him, but she's thinking about it.

Meanwhile, Ginger came outside and we still hiss at each other. Some things never change.

Happy Spring everyone!

Thursday in the Garden with Jonesie

Thank you to everyone who came to my Gotcha Day party! I've never thrown a party before so thank you for making it a special day. My mom and dad got me a potted catnip plant! It won't stay in the pot for long since it will get planted outside so I can keep an eye on it. My sisters Cory and Ellie wasted no time in helping themselves to my gift. I was ok with it since they don't go outside and can't play in the catnip forest. It's good to share.

Cory and Ellie said they were glad they couldn't be outside with everyone because it was kind of a cold and damp day. The sun did come out, but it's what they call "sun breaks", meaning you get sun, then clouds, then rain, then sun...repeat.

March isn't the best time for an outdoor party so I'll probably throw another party in the summertime. Some of my neighborhood furriends could not attend because they weren't let outside in the semi-yucky weather. All I wanted to do after the last guests left was to have mom turn on the fireplace to I could warm up and sleep!

I didn't get a lot of presents for my birthday. It's not because my family does not love me, it's because I don't really want much other than to enjoy my yard. Why buy me a new scratching post when I have this lovely tree, with cat nip growing at the base? I even prefer my kibble to stinky goodness!

Here's Bennette checking out the nip that's in it's baby beginning phase. The tender little leaves are quite the delicacy!

I have been living here for 7 years now. It's hard to believe that I was in such bad shape when I was found that it took my mom and dad a few months to nurse me back to health. I never dreamed I would be living such a good life now and I appreciate all that I have every day. That's why I don't ask for much. I have everything I want.

PS. I've been trying to nurse my mom by sitting on her owie shoulder and purring. She says it's better than a heat pad...but my pesky sister Ellie thinks it's her job to mother everyone and she won't let me do my job. Lucky for me mom helped me type most of this post before she owied herself. Mom is grateful for the healing purrs everyone has sent and is thankful every minute for her helmet.